Lemon Basil Entremet
There’s no secret that I love basil in desserts! These basil macarons and basil mousse cake should have give you the hint by now! But really! The aroma of basil in a dessert is something that tingles my senses just by thinking of it! And it works so well with citrus fruits and berries! It’s comforting to know that basil could be combined with lemons, limes, raspberries, strawberries, limes, oranges, mint etc. You could never get bored of using it in desserts, that’s for sure!
This time I focused on three main ingredients: basil, lemon and strawberries. The basil and lemon mousse pairs so well with the strawberry insert that one tiny little cake is not enough for a strong sweet tooth! You know what they say: a well balanced diet is having one cake in each hand!
Lemon Basil Entremet
Servings :10 pieces
Ingredients
Lemon Pate Sucree:
- 70 g butter (softened)
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 35 g powdered sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 20 g almond flour
- 140 g all-purpose flour (sifted)
Lemon Olive Oil Biscuit:
- 25 g butter (melted)
- 35 ml extra virgin olive oil
- 1 egg
- 60 g white sugar
- 10 ml whole milk
- 60 g all-purpose flour
- 1 g baking powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 ml lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Strawberry Insert:
- 150 g strawberry puree
- 35 g white sugar
- 4 g pectin NH
- 2 ml lemon juice
- 2 g gelatin (sheets)
Lemon Basil Mousse:
- 60 ml lemon juice
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 10 g fresh basil (chopped)
- 100 g white sugar
- 35 g butter
- ————————
- 6 g gelatin (sheets)
- 300 ml heavy cream (lightly whipped)
Mirror Glaze:
- 150 g glucose syrup
- 150 g white sugar
- 75 ml water
- 100 ml sweetened condensed milk
- 150 g white chocolate
- 10 g gelatin (sheets, bloomed in cold water)
- Yellow and green food coloring
Instructions
Lemon Pate Sucree:
- Mix the butter, lemon zest and sugar in a bowl for 5 minutes.
- Stir in the egg yolk and vanilla, as well as the almond flour and mix well.
- Add the flour and knead briefly then wrap it in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Roll out the dough into a thin sheet then cut small discs of dough using a cutter slightly bigger than the base of your small cakes.
- Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and bake in the preheated oven at 350F for 10-14 minutes or until slightly golden brown on the edges.
- Allow to cool down in the pan.
Lemon Olive Oil Biscuit:
- Combine the butter and olive oil.
- Mix the egg and sugar and mix for a few minutes until airy.
- Stir in the milk, then add the butter and olive oil, followed by the lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Fold in the flour, baking powder and salt.
- Spread the batter in a thin sheet in a baking pan lined with parchment paper and bake in the preheated oven at 350F for 10-15 minutes or until slightly golden brown.
- When done, allow to cool down in the pan then cut small discs, big enough to fit your miniature silicone moulds.
- Place aside wrapped in plastic wrap.
Strawberry Insert:
- Combine the sugar and pectin.
- Bloom the gelatin in cold water.
- Heat up the puree in a saucepan.
- Stir in the sugar and pectin then cook for 2-3 minutes until thickened.
- Remove from heat and stir in the lemon juice.
- Add the gelatin and mix well.
- Pour the mixture into small silicone moulds – semispheres.
- Freeze for a few hours.
Lemon Basil Mousse:
- Bloom the gelatin sheets.
- Combine the lemon juice, eggs, lemon zest, basil, sugar and butter in a heatproof bowl.
- Place over a hot water bath and cook for 15-20 minutes or until slightly thickened.
- Remove from the water bath then stir in the gelatin.
- Allow to come to a neutral temperature then fold in the whipped cream.
- Fill your silicone moulds half way then place the strawberry inserts and pour more mousse on top. Finish with a disc of lemon olive oil biscuit then freeze.
Mirror Glaze:
- Place the chocolate in a tall container, fit for a hand blender.
- Combine the glucose, sugar and water in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Heat this syrup up until 103C.
- Remove from heat and stir in the condensed milk then add the gelatin.
- Pour this mixture over the chocolate.
- Allow to sit for 1 minute then blend with a hand blender until it becomes smooth.
- Reserve a few tablespoons of glaze in a different bowl. Color the larger quantity of glaze with yellow and the reserved one with green.
- Allow the glaze to cool down to 35C before using. You can make it a few hours ahead and re-heat in the microwave until the needed temperature.
To finish the cake:
- Remove the cakes from the freezers and place them on a grill.
- Evenly pour the yellow glaze over then decorate with a few strips of green glaze.
- Allow to drip off then transfer each cake on a disc of pate sucree.
- Decorate as you wish!
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